Atlanta Real Estate Market Brief A Word from 2017 Atlanta REALTORS® President Bill Rawlings: “Home values are rising at reasonable levels, and the Atlanta market has stayed accessible to both buyers and sellers. The local market has consistently had around a three-months’ supply for the past year, with sale prices improving reliably yet without the rapid acceleration of some other major cities.” Real estate is a cyclical business. Generally speaking, in a stable economy the prices of homes will often […]

Kennesaw Home Under Contract Congratulations to my clients Josh and Christina on their great find in Kennesaw. Fantastic home, fantastic schools, fantastic neighborhood! Beautiful two story traditional with master on main, color rich hardwood floors throughout main floor, separate dining room and living room, and two story foyer. The spacious kitchen with granite countertops, new stainless steel appliances and huge island overlooks a two story family room with fire place. The luxurious master bedroom with bay window features a fully […]

A Word from 2017 Atlanta REALTORS® President Bill Rawlings: “The housing market continues to be strong in Atlanta, reflecting an increase in sales each month for the last two years. We are optimistic that this economic environment will continue with healthy increases in average home sales price and homes closed.” Seller’s Market The market remains strong for sellers, as inventory has not yet caught up with current demand. Numbers in the brief are indicative of good appreciation, and a sign […]

Atlanta Housing Market – November 2016 Demand November residential sales were at 3,984, an increase of 20.1% from the previous year. Price Average and median sales prices continue to gain traction and outpace 2015’s figures, with positive gains. The median sales price in November was $235,000, an increase of 6.8% from last November. The average sales price was $295,000, up 5.4% from the previous year. Supply Atlanta area housing inventory totaled 15,655 units in November, an increase of 2.9% from […]

New Forsyth County School Construction (Click on school names for maps of the new school locations) Brandywine Elementary is located on Martin Rd. south of McFarland and Highway 9. Brandywine is currently under construction with a total building cost of about $17.9 million. The funding for Brandywine Elementary has been paid for in part from prior referendums with the remaining half of funds coming from state reimbursements for money that we earned through the state’s capital outlay program. DeSana Middle School is […]

What can you do about a Frozen Water Pipe? Water expands when it freezes, causing pipes that freeze to split. Even if a pipe doesn’t split, the ice will block the flow of water, a hallmark of a frozen pipe. Generally, a pipe will freeze only in a small area. If no damage occurs, you can thaw it out without consequence. To thaw a frozen water pipe, heed the following imperatives of pipe thawing: 1. First, Do No Harm. If the pipe […]

In a study by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), we learn what we always feared. Nearly half of home buyers looking for home mortgage loans seriously consider only one lender for their home purchase. This is evidence that there continues to be a significant misunderstanding about the different relationships buyers have between their real estate agents, and their mortgage loan officers. You’re a Client of a Buyer’s Agent Buyer’s Agents work exclusively for you, with a legal obligation to […]

If you’re a parent, take a moment to watch this video. For some of us, this may be a real eye opener. What is the very top present our children wanted for Christmas this year? Was it the newest or that most popular toy? A video game, stuffed animal or a giant playscape for their favorite toy characters? As you would, or at least should have expected… no, those presents are not at all close to what our children desired the […]

Things to Know About Mortgage Loans Get prequalified. This allows you to really enjoy your home search as you remove any doubt that if you find the right home within your prequalified amount, you can buy it. Sources for loans are banks, credit unions, and mortgage brokers. Shop more than one loan provider and let them each know you’re speaking with others; they’ll work harder to get you a better deal. Marginal or bad credit? Speaking with a lender early […]

What Are Your Kids Talking About? If you think you are tech savvy all because you know what “LOL” means, let me test your coolness. Any idea what “IWSN” stands for in Internet slang? It’s a declarative statement: I want sex now. If it makes you feel any better, I had no clue, and neither did a number of women I asked about it. Acronyms are widely popular across the Internet, especially on social media and texting apps, because, in […]

Alpharetta’s Unit 201 of the American Legion is proud to be accepting donations for the 2014 Toys for Tots campaign. Donations of new, unwrapped toys may be taken to the American Legion Post at 201 Wills Road, between 3pm and 10pm through Christmas. Auxiliary President Deb Swyters said “The ladies of our organization are proud to be part of this nationwide effort to help make sure that every child in our community experiences the joy of a new gift at […]

Pricing Your Home Too High is a Big Mistake Selling your home can be tough, especially if you make some common mistakes. Stay away from those mistakes and you may find it’s not as difficult as you thought. One of the most common mistakes and most detrimental is when home owners price their homes too high. Pricing is the single most important factor in the marketing of a home – between 80-90%. No matter how great the exposure, an overpriced […]

Can a Comparative Market Analysis Help You? To get the most accurate estimate of how much you should list your property for, your real estate agent can provide you with a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA). A CMA is an informal estimate of market value, based on sales of comparable properties in your area. It generally takes into account various aspects of your home, including size, features and annual costs. Reviewing comparable homes that have sold within the past year, along […]

We’re proud to once again offer our Annual Atlanta Top Schools Awards. One of the the most important things parents need to consider when searching for Atlanta homes is the quality of education their children will receive in the school district where their new homes are located. We’ve been bringing our Atlanta Top School Awards to our website visitors since 2008, with updated lists coming out every year. Quite honestly, it has been extremely difficult to gather quality information. Most of […]

Atlanta Halloween Safety Tips Walk Safely Cross the street at corners, using traffic signals and crosswalks. Look left, right and left again when crossing and keep looking as you cross. Put electronic devices down and keep heads up and walk, don’t run, across the street. Teach children to make eye contact with drivers before crossing in front of them. Always walk on sidewalks or paths. If there are no sidewalks, walk facing traffic as far to the left as possible. […]